Vehicle owners use their cars and trucks for a variety of purposes. One common use of vehicle cargo areas and back seats is to store and transport a variety of items. Many vehicles also have retractable seats which can be retracted to create a larger cargo area. However, some items, particularly larger items, can shift in a cargo area or back seat during braking and turning and scratch, scuff, or even crack the vehicle's interior door panels. Items also tend to vibrate due to the inherent vibration that a vehicle encounters from variations in the road surface. If the item is resting against the vehicle door, the repeated movement of the item due to vibration could cause the item to scuff the door. In addition, items stacked on other items tend to slide off the underlying items and strike the doors, often scratching, scuffing, or cracking the door.
Not only do such scratches, scuffs and cracks detract from the vehicle's appearance, but they also reduce the resale or trade-in value of the vehicle. The problem is particularly problematic among individuals who lease their vehicles, as the leaseholder may incur damage penalties or charges when returning a vehicle at the end of a lease. Such charges could potentially amount to hundreds or even thousands of dollars depending on the amount of damage.
Another common source of damage to door panels is due to pets. Pets, especially dogs, are known to place their paws on the window jamb, and consequently scratch the interior door panels and window jambs with their claws. Such scratches detract from the vehicle's appearance and reduce the resale or trade-in value of the vehicle.
Children also pose a threat to vehicle doors. It is not uncommon for children to spill liquids and foods on a passenger door. While such spills can often be wiped up, spills that enter speaker grilles, door handles, window buttons, door locks, etc. may be impossible to clean up without disassembly of the door. Further, spills entering such areas can cause costly damage such as electrical shorts, malfunction, etc. Another issue relating to children is safety, as discussed in more detail below.
Therefore, a need exists for an automotive door protector for protecting a door of a vehicle from damage caused by cargo, pets, spills, etc., thus ensuring that the door will not be scratched, scuffed, marked, soiled, or otherwise damaged. This in turn preserves the appearance of the vehicle and spares the owner the cost of having the door panel repaired or replaced. By protecting a vehicle's interior, the vehicle's appearance would be maintained, as well as its trade in or resale value.
One known attempt at vehicle door protection is sold by Zordoff (www.zordoff.com). The device is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown, the device 100 is basically a sheet 102 of fabric having a flap 104 coupled to one end thereof. The flap 104 is slipped between the window 106 and inner door panel 108 of a vehicle door 110. However, this product has several disadvantages. First, as shown in FIG. 2, because the shape of the sheet 102 is rectangular, substantial portions of the door panel 108 remain unprotected. Second, because the sheet 102 is not coextensive with the door 110, sliding objects will tend to catch and curl the edges of the sheet 102, thereby rendering the device 100 inoperative.
A safety issue that has heretofore required complex mechanical means to implement is that relating to children playing with the door's lock and window controls, as well as the door's handle. Likewise, it is not uncommon for pets to accidentally activate power windows or door locks. The tragedy that could befall a child or pet falling from an open door during travel at highway speeds is self evident. Further, it is not uncommon for a child to close his or her extremities in a closing window.
To counter the potential for tragedy, automobile manufacturers are now installing child safety locks and window disabling mechanisms, also known as window locks, on many new vehicles. However, mechanisms such as child safety locks that disengage operation of the door handle require actuation of a mechanism on the jamb of the door. Because of the difficulty of engaging such mechanisms, many drivers simply forego engaging them. Other drivers do not want to deal with the inconvenience of constantly engaging and disengaging such mechanisms. Similarly, while window locks are often engaged by merely pushing a button, parents often forget to engage the window lock or may accidentally and unknowingly disengage the window lock.
What is also needed is a device that enhances safety by reducing the risk of children or pets being injured by power windows or possibly falling from the vehicle.